After some recent weekends on the road and regular long days at work, Mary and I stayed around home Saturday and Sunday. The D.C. Randonneurs yesterday ran a brevet on the Eastern Shore (The Flatbread 200K), but neither of us had the drive to get up before dawn and ride in the 20s and 30s.
The upside was that I was able to get my 2017 coffeeneuring program back on track. I needed two rides in Philadelphia to give myself a buffer, and got just one. That means I had to coffeeneur both days this weekend and get out there both days next weekend to claim an official finish. The end of coffeeneuring comes way too fast!
Saturday we did a minimalistic 3.7 mile ride (Strava file here) to the Velo Cafe coffee bar at District Hardware and Bikes in the new Wharf development. The Wharf is just down Maine Avenue SW from our place, less than a mile away. Mary and I took a longcut via the grocery store by Nationals Park (an errandonnee, if you will) to get the required two miles.
I had an almond milk cappuccino and Mary asked for a decaf macchiato. Mine was ok but a little bitter; Mary realized after we left that they did not make hers a decaf. Oops!
The cafe appears to be still getting its legs and though they grind Vigilante beans, there is room for improvement. We’ll check back in a few weeks.
Sunday we had another errand to accomplish – handing off a winter cycling jacket I sold. We agreed to meet the buyer at Swing’s Coffee Roasters in Alexandria and rode the Spectrum tandem there. The distance is about eight miles each way. Temperatures were warmer today and we had a pleasant ride with a lap around Hains Point on the way back. The full 21-mile route is here.
The paths around the Mall and Potomac River were pleasantly unpopulated. I like that part of winter in D.C.!
Next Saturday Mary is away – I’ll need a riding buddy to go coffeeneuring with me to keep my “friends and family” theme intact. Or I’ll have to designate one of my bikes as family, which they kind of are.
